This invention relates to roofing materials and, more particularly, to an improved roll forming machine for producing an indeterminate length metal roof panel.
Traditional roofing material is supplied in relatively small pieces. For example, slate tiles and wood shakes are supplied as individual shingle units. Conventional asbestos shingles are supplied as panels approximately three feet long with one row of singles. Installation of such roofing material is therefore very time consuming, since only a small area of the roof can be covered by each shingle or panel of roofing material. Another problem with traditional roofing material is the disposal thereof. In addition to taking up space, some traditional roofing materials, such as asbestos shingles, are considered to be hazardous substances.
Metal roofing is known which is both relatively economical to install and which may be recycled. However, such metal roofing is typically provided as elongated panels which are installed generally vertically from the eave to the peak of a roof. Such roofing material has been used almost exclusively for commercial and industrial buildings because its aesthetic appearance is substantially different from generally accepted notions of how a residential roof should appear. The cross-referenced patent applications disclose an improved metal roof panel which is shaped and formed to simulate the appearance of traditional residential roofing material.
Installation time of roofing material is inversely related to the area covered by each roof panel. Therefore, if a metal roof panel was available that traversed a complete section of roof,this would save installation time. However, different roofs have different lengths, so standardizing panel sizes would be difficult. On the other hand, it is known to use a roll forming machine on-site to shape sheet metal supplied in the form of a coiled strip into roof gutters and house siding of indeterminate length. It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a roll forming machine for producing on-site an indeterminate length metal roof panel which simulates the appearance of traditional roofing material.